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The
Congressional Connector:
The Week of July 11-July 15, 2005
House Approves Lake St. Clair Restoration
Funding in Water Resources Bill
On July 14, the House overwhelmingly approved bipartisan
legislation authorizing hundreds of navigation improvement, flood protection
and environmental restoration projects across the nation. The measure included $5 million requested
by Rep. Levin for the Corps of Engineers to carry out aquatic ecosystem
identified in the recently completed Lake St. Clair Management Plan. When he wrote to the Chairman of the Water
Resources and Environment Subcommittee on March 1 to request these funds,
Rep. Levin noted, ALake St. Clair is not the largest body of water in the
Great Lakes System, but no body of water is more important.@
The Water Resources Development Act now moves across Capitol Hill to
the Senate. For additional
information, click here.
Lawmaker Warns that House-Passed OSHA Bills Jeopardize
Safety and Health of Workers
On July 13, a divided House of Representatives approved
four bills that would seriously undermine the Occupational Safety and Health
Act (OSHA) and the safety of American workers. Almost 6,000 workers a year die due to
workplace accidents. Another estimated
50,000 to 60,000 die every year due to occupational illnesses. During the debate, Rep. Levin said, AThere is a real disconnect between
the issues the American people say they want Congress to address, and the
legislative agenda of the Majority Party that runs the House of
Representatives. Three months ago, NBC
News and the Wall Street Journal commissioned a poll that asked Americans
about the issues they felt were important for Congress to be engaged on. The response was clear. The number‑one ranked issue that
Americans want Congress to deal is workplace health and safety. A full eighty‑four percent of those
surveyed said they wanted Congress to spend more time addressing this
issue.... So what is the response of
the Congressional leaders? Today they
have brought four bills to the House Floor that weaken enforcement of
workplace health and safety.@ The House approved the four OSHA
rollback bills on largely party-line votes.
For additional information, click here.
The Case Against CAFTA
On July 11, the Washington Post printed an opinion piece
by Rep. Levin that underscores the many problems with the proposed Central
American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).
Rep. Levin wrote that a ACAFTA
that does not seek to address [inadequate labor laws] is bad for these
individual workers, wrong for Central American nations desperately in need of
a growing middle class, and unfair to both U.S.
workers who should not compete with workers who are suppressed and to U.S.
businesses in need of markets.@
To read the entire article,
click here.
House Condemns London
Bombings
Four bombs exploded in the London transit system last week, killing
more than 50 people and injuring hundreds more. On July 14, the House of Representatives
voted unanimously to adopt a resolution condemning the bombings, offering
condolences to the families of those killed, and expressing solidarity with
the people of the United
Kingdom during this difficult time.
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